Technologies News
Year Twelve Computer Science ATAR
As we come to the conclusion of our Year Twelve courses, students are finalising assessments and revising for upcoming examinations. Our Year Twelve Computer Science ATAR students completed fantastic projects bringing together two years of learning as they built complex Python applications integrated with SQL databases. Fantastic projects and rewarding for students to see the culmination of their hard work throughout the Computer Science course.
Our Year Twelve Computer Science General students completed interactive, text-based narrative style video games. Students are completing their last assessment in designing a network according to Cisco network diagram conventions – considering network hardware requirements, designing for security and performance.
Our Year Eleven students in our ATAR and General courses are working through data management – exploring the use of SQL and database logic and how Microsoft Excel can be used to manage and manipulate data through the use of formulas.
Mr Kieran Bailey | Head of IT /Teacher
Hospitality Electives
Year Seven
Our students have been honing their kitchen skills, making delicious chicken tacos and learning various knife techniques. They collaborated on designing and baking savoury muffins, and were surprised by how easy homemade sausage rolls can be. To end the term, they’ll bake chocolate chip cookies, comparing the nutritional qualities of homemade versus store-bought treats. The Mokare group has shown great enthusiasm and teamwork in the kitchen this term.
Year Eight
Recently, the Hospitality kitchen has focused on breakfast, with students preparing a variety of nutritious recipes like Bircher muesli, savory soufflé, and homemade granola. They enjoyed the challenge of making healthy breakfast pancakes and creatively presenting them with garnishes. The highlight was designing and producing their own breakfast dishes based on the inclusion of the five food groups, which were then photographed. All the dishes turned out amazing, showcasing the students’ skills and creativity.
Year Nine
Students learned to make pizza dough and compared homemade pizzas with store-bought and takeaway versions. They then designed their own high-fibre, low-salt, sugar, and fat pizzas, which were photographed which featured on eco-friendly pizza box labels. The kitchen was filled with the delightful aroma of various flavour combinations, reminiscent of an Italian pizzeria. Currently, students are studying the six nutrients, focusing on carbohydrates with recipes like nacho bowls, individual apple pies, and sushi tacos.
Year Ten
The Flavour Forecast® 2024 recipe challenge is a challenge designed by McCormick Foods Australia and the Home Economics Institute of Australia Inc. for Year Ten home economics students in Australian schools. The challenge is for students to develop three original recipes to support the McCormick® Flavour Forecast® 24th Edition.
Our students collaborated in groups to meet the design briefs for this challenge. Recently, Chef Silas Masih from Pepper and Salt Restaurant in Denmark visited the class to demonstrate food plating techniques for photography. Following this, the students presented three incredible dishes, which were photographed to support their entry. Currently, the class is working on the written submission to accompany their entry. Best of luck to the Year Ten Hospitality class as their submission will soon be judged in Melbourne against hundreds of other school entries nationwide.
Certificate ll Hospitality
Year Eleven
Our students have been delving into the history and health considerations of sandwich making, learning how to store ingredients correctly, exploring different sandwich styles, and mastering production techniques with various toppings and fillings. Their recipes have included open and Pullman sandwiches, pressed focaccia sandwiches, and wraps.
Last week, during class, they prepared and stored a range of fillings suitable for making pinwheel sandwiches. These were then assembled and packaged for sale at the Whole School Art Exhibition. Congratulations to the students, who all presented themselves professionally in their chef uniforms during production and in their front-of-house uniforms while interacting with guests and selling sandwiches at the exhibition.
Year Twelve
Congratulations to the Certificate II Hospitality class of 2024 for completing their qualification! The RTO Assessor from Perth was thoroughly impressed with the students’ knowledge and skills across the range of units of competency. He observed them preparing and serving espresso coffee and praised the efficiency and quality of their work. Students also showcased their polished front-of-house skills while interacting with and serving customers appetisers at the Technologies Showcase.
To finish the term, the students have been making and selling coffees across the campus to staff and students. Each student leaves the course with a range of employability skills that are valuable in the industry and transferable across various jobs.
We wish you all the very best for your futures!
Mrs Teresa McAllister | Head of Technologies/Teacher
Sustainable Production
Thank you to all the students and parents who made it to the Technologies Showcase it never ceases to amaze me how much produce we have to put on show when the day arrives.
Year Seven
The Baudin garden is thriving as the temperature and day length starts to increase. The weeds have benefited from this spring boost as well– the groups are now able to see the difference a good cover of mulch can make. The students are picking broccoli, lettuce and onions for Hospitality and eating a lot of broccolini and peas as they work.
Year Eight
The Year Eight students have started to plant our spring crops – cucumbers, beans, tomatoes. We have a greenhouse tomato growing competition under way, Josh’s tomato plant has the lead in height so far but it will be yield that counts. The Year Eight students discovered an enormous healthy Bok Choy in our garden a few weeks ago and we have saved it for seed. We have also removed less genetically superior Bok Choy flowers so that we hopefully have a superior strain for our seed bank in the coming years.
Year Nine
The Year Nine students have shown great commitment to their projects and gardens in the last few weeks some of them have even come down in their lunchtime to tend their areas. This week will be fun as we plant our spring crops of beans, basil, tomatoes, corn and cucumbers. We managed to find some seeds of the colourful Aztec and Glass gem corn, so we are looking forward to seeing how they grow.
Some Year Eight and Nine students have taken an interest in growing meal worms to have protein-rich snacks for the chickens. Meal worms can also be incorporated into the human diet as a sustainable protein source. We purchased and have set up a tray system to grow these and they seem to be doing well. Riley has also constructed a feeding grid for the chickens and sown a variety of seeds inside. The idea is that the chickens can eat the tops of the plants through the mesh and leave the roots undamaged for further growth.
Ms Diane Thomas | Teacher
Woodwork
Year Seven
As we near the end of the term our wonderful creative students have designed and produced a very contemporary modern tea light candle holder using Western Australian Hardwoods. They have been busy in the workshop using sash clamps, Tite bond two glue and resin to assist in creating their designs. Understanding the effectiveness of machines like the thicknesser, drop saw and trimmer to improve the finish of the product.
Year Eight
With the Tic Tac Toe skill builder completed, our budding designers have moved onto the Western Australian Hardwoods timer box. They have been busy in the workshop marking out their pieces, so the grain matches then cutting each part on the drop saw to size. The router and table saw are getting a workout with their joins and grooves. The next phase in creating these boxes will involve joining the parts together to create the base of the box.
Year Nine - Composite Materials
As Term Three nears the end, our designers have produced a very contemporary modern Sushi Board using Western Australian Hardwoods. They have been busy in the workshop using sash clamps, Tite bond two glue and resin to assist in creating their designs. Understanding the effectiveness of machines like the thicknesser, drop saw, trimmer and routers to improve the finish of the product. This Friday we are moving out of the workshop and into the hospitality area to make the sushi, so they can see the product in action!
Mr Ashley Keatch | Technology Woodwork Teacher
Mr Brodie Sarre | Technology Woodwork Teacher